Foldable Samsung phone for 2018 could have a folding display
Samsung is full steam head making a foldable Galaxy phone for 2018. Although it isn't clear if that means the screen itself could fold, we know that Samsung is at least thinking about increasing its output of foldable displays.
The company said in its earnings report on Wednesday that it's developing foldable displays, one of the components that could be used in a phone that folds up.
"As for the Mobile business, Samsung will continue its efforts to differentiate its smartphones by adopting cutting-edge technologies, such as foldable OLED displays."
That was the third time Samsung mentioned foldable OLED displays in its earning call. This is clearly an area of interest for Samsung, and a way it plans to pull ahead of Apple and other phonemakers.
While this doesn't mean that the foldable phone will get a screen that folds, we'd be interested to see if Samsung can put its flexible displays -- which are used in phones with curved screens like the Galaxy S8 and Note 8 -- into a phone that also folds. Flexible displays can curve and bend, but don't currently fold.
Samsung Mobile chief DJ Koh said last September that the company will make a folding phone as soon as 2018.
Foldable phones are a hot topic in the smartphone world, with years of development and what-if concept pieces popping up from time to time. Foldable phones could increase a device's usable screen space while keeping its physical footprint small, and shake up a design that's grown stale.
Samsung wouldn't be the first to make a foldable phone. If it succeeds, you can thank ZTE, a Chinese company that released the Axon M late last year. That device has two screens that fold open on a hinge like a mini tablet or book. With this feature, it can do unique things like combine the two screens into one big display or use them separately to multitask.
Samsung has submitted a patent for a similar phone design with two screens that opens and folds. It also applied for a different patent where the screen can fold in on itself. This second design would support the foldable OLED panel that Samsung says it's working on.
Read next: All the reasons you might want a foldable Samsung Galaxy phone
Another good read: If foldable phones catch on, you can thank these guys
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